Closure for can opening



Jan. 8, 1957 v v o 2,776,778

CLOSURE FOR CAN OPENING Filed Jan. 24, 1955 INVENTOR RALPH .A. VALVANO BY Wu M $1144,

ATTORNEYS United States Patent CLOSURE FOR CAN OPENING Ralph A. Valvano, Los Angeies, Calif.

Application January 24, 1955, Serial No. 483,722

3 Claims. (Cl. 22024) This invention has to do with closures for containers, particularly closures which can be applied to and removed from a can, such as the common can in which canned goods are sold, for the purpose of closing and sealing an opening in the end wall thereof.

At present many liquids are sold in cans. In the case of liquids such as fruit and vegetable juices and beer and soft drinks, it often happens that only part of the contents are used at the time the can is opened. This creates a problem of how to properly seal the can, because it is customary to open such cans by piercing with an instrument which leaves a substantially triangularly shaped hole in the end of the can.

An object of my invention is to provide a simple, novel, and improved closure for covering and sealing an opening in the can end wall, particularly the type of opening described above.

Another object is to provide a novel closure of the type indicated which is easy to operate in that it can be readily applied to the can to close and seal an opening in the can end wall and also readily removed and reused whenever desired. In this connection it is an object to provide such a device which springs into place under slight hand pressure and firmly sealingly engages the area about the opening in the can.

A further object is to provide a device of the type indicated which is of simple construction and can be economically manufactured for sale at low cost.

These and other objects will be apparent from the drawing and the following description.

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a can showing a device embodying the invention thereon;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but showing the closure device being applied;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the closure device; and

Fig. 5 is an elevational view of the closure on line 5-5 of Fig. 2.

More particularly describing the invention, 11 generally indicates a conventional can which has a cylindn'cal outer wall 12. 14 designates an end wall of the p can which is shown provided with an opening 15 of triangular shape such as is made by an instrument commonly used for opening cans containing a liquid.

Numeral 18 generally indicates the device of the invention, which comprises generally a body 19 and an arched spring 20. The body includes a plate 21 which may be made of substantially rigid metal, having a flat main portion 22 shaped as best shown in Fig. 1. At its outer edge 22' the main portion is curved convexly to a radius substantially the same as that of the can with which it is to be used. At its opposite end the plate has an upturned or upstanding portion 24 and a return end portion 25. As best shown in Figs. 2 and 3 the portion 25 extends inwardly toward the portion 24 but is somewhat shorter. Portion 24 is provided with a slot-like aperture 26 for receiving the end of the spring 20. The spring may be made of metal and is generally 3 shaped. It has a main arch portion 28 which overlies the main portion 22 of the plate. The spring has a hooked end portion 29 at one end and the end of this is received between the parts 24 and 25, the spring passing through the aperture 26. The spring is thus mounted for limited pivotal movement at one end upon the remainder of the device. At its free end the spring terminates in a hooked end portion 30 to provide means for engagement under the external rim 32 of the can 11.

In order to make an effective seal for the opening in the can, I prefer to provide a pad or layer of material 34 on the under surface of the plate and while this is preferably resilient and therefore may consist of a sheet of sponge rubber cemented to the main portion 22 of the plate, I contemplate that other yieldable materials may be used, and it is not necessary that they be resilient.

In use, the device is first positioned on the can as shown in Fig.3. In this position end 30 of the spring engages under the rim 32 of the can while the outer end or edge 22 of the body engages the inside of the can. The device is then sprung into place by depressing the return bend connecting parts 24 and 25 as shown in Fig. 3, to pivot the body and move the parts into the position of Fig. 2. In this latter position it will be apparent'that the outer end of the plate 22 is slightly over center or above a line 36 passing through the pivotal point of the spring and the outer end of the spring where it hooks under the rim of the can so that the device is securely clamped in place until removed by upward pivotal movement applied to the device in a direction opposite to the applied force shown in Fig. 3.

Although I have illustrated and described a preferred form of my invention, I contemplate that various changes and modifications can bernade therein without departing from the invention, the scope of which is indicated by the following claims.

I claim: I

1. A closure for an opening in the end wall of a can having an external rim adjacent the end wall, comprising a stiff plate having a flat main portion and an upwardly extending end portion at an abrupt angle to the plane of the main portion, said end portion having an opening adjacent the main portion and being bent back upon itself on its outer side to a point adjacent but spaced from the opening, an arched spring of flat stock overlying the main portion of said plate, said spring having a first hooked end extending through the opening in said end portion of said plate and between the two parts of the end portion where it is bent back upon itself, said spring having a second and oppositely hooked end for engagement with the rim of the can, and a yieldable layer of material secured to the under side of the main portion of said plate.

2. A closure as set forth in claim 1 in which said yieldable layer of material is resilient.

3. A closure as set forth in claim 1 in which the end edge of said plate opposite to said upwardly extending end portion is convexly curved.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,157,218 Ross May 9, 1939 2,246,533 Peters June 24, 1941 2,333,645 Eckman Nov. 9, 1943 

